Somewhere I belong
by Elliebunk
Summary: Luke receives news that his sister Joyce is dead, and that she's left him with a niece he's never met.BTVS and GG crossover.
1. Tiny cities made of Ash

b I This is in response Alia's 'Gilmore Girls/BtVS: Dawn!Verse' challenge. /b /I 

I Challenge rules: Luke and Liz had an older sister, Joyce, and when her and Buffy die, Dawn is sent to live with Luke.

---Main Pairing(s): I want Dawn as the main character, so definitely her. I want her with Tristan (do not ask me how it happened), Rory (Slash-Addict), or Logan (Meh, I ran out of idea's.)

---Background Pairing(s): Luke/Lorelai. Emily/Richard. Jackson/Sookie. Lane/Dave. Xander/Anya. Tara/Oz. 

---Banned Pairing(s): Dean/Rory Lane/Zach. Lane/Brian. Jess/Dawn

---Characters to include (other than those above): Kirk. Taylor. Paris. Apricot (Babette's kitten) Michel. Cordelia, Faith, Louise

---Characters not to include: Dean, Ms. Patty, Christopher, Max, Nicole, Rachel, Hank, Liz, Giles, 

---Must include: pop culture references, Luke's Diner, a bookstore, Stars Hollow High, Spike being arrested for 'stalking' Dawn after Taylor phones a complaint. Kirk admitting his undying love for anyone. Spike finding out Dawn has a tattoo. A town meeting. Spike taking Dawn out for a patrol. Spike and Luke bonding.

---May not include: hospitals, monkey bars, rabbits, Luke finding out about Dawn's tattoo, any lovey dovey 'first time I say "I love you"' moments, bars, Dawn becoming the bestest of friends with Lorelai and Rory three seconds into the story, any racially derogatory words.

---Alter: Dave never left, Rory and Dean didn't sleep together (Though she can have slept with someone else at any other point during the show), Dawn leaves after Buffy kills herself /I 

** b DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything or anyone. They belong to Joss and the CW. /b **

Chapter One:

Dawn stared out the window of the plane, trying to tune out the noises around her. Xander sat in the seat next to her, silent. Spike and Faith were in the row behind. The group was on their way to Connecticut, where they were to leave Dawn with an uncle she had never met.

Dawn tried not to remember the shock she had felt when Giles had read her mom's will, the way Willow had cried, Spike putting a hole through the wall. She had to leave home, leave her family and move across the country to live with some I _man. /I _She blinked back the tears, not willing to let Xander see her cry. She hadn't cried since Buffy had thrown herself off the tower. She couldn't.

The pilot came over the intercom, announcing that they were preparing to land. Dawn gripped the armrest tightly, her knuckles turning white. She didn't want to be here; she just wanted to go home.

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Luke frantically gave the apartment one last look-over, making sure that it was really clean. He checked the spare room, though the only thing in there was a bed and dresser.

He was losing his mind. He had never raised a girl before, and had no idea what he was doing. Sure, she was pretty grown already, but so was the last kid he took in, and look how that turned out.

When he had got the call saying that Joyce had died, he had broke down crying right in the diner. Joyce was his big sister; she wasn't supposed to die. She took care of everyone; even when she had got married and moved to California, she had always called to check up on him and Liz, making sure that they were doing well in school, seeing if they needed anything. Joyce had mothered him his entire childhood, and now, not only was she dead, but so was her daughter- his niece that he would never meet.

He had told Lorelai, knowing that he was going to need all the help he could get. She had immediately taken over, registering Dawn for school, helping him clear out the room that had been Jess', going through some of Rory's old stuff for books, and shopping for school supplies. She was more than willing to help him, and he suspected that being away from Rory was a big part of that. Lorelai was a mom, and at the moment, she was daughterless.

Someone named Rupert had called him yesterday to tell him that Dawn would be arriving around ten the next night, along with a few friends who were to see her off. Lorelai had booked them rooms at the Inn and Luke had already posted a sign stating the diner was going to be closed for the weekend. The town knew that something was up once they had seen the sign, but despite the deepest diggings of the town gossipmongers, no one had any idea what would cause Luke to close for any amount of time.

Luke sat down on the couch, his head aching. What was he going to do with a kid? The only kid he knew who liked him was Rory; everyone else seemed to be able to sense his loathing of all things under 18 and leave him alone.

He looked at the clock; they would be here soon. With a sigh, he stood up and headed downstairs.

"Oh, boy."

_ I AN/: Short chapter, I know. The next one'll be longer, promise. /I _


	2. Haunted

_AN/: I'm upping Dawn's age to sixteen, with a birthday coming soon. I'm not sure if it'll help the story, but it'll make me feel less like I'm helping certain characters rob the cradle in later chapters._

DISCLAIMER: This is what happened when Joss Whedon and the people at the CW got together in Tijuana; utter chaos.

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Dawn made her way outside the airport, needing air. The coldness of the night filled her lungs, centering her. She wasn't worried about the others not finding her, between Spike and Faith she could never get lost, no matter how much she wanted to.

Dawn leaned against the wall, soaking in what she knew to be her last minutes of peace, alone. They didn't last long, though; Spike and Faith came out loaded down with bags, Xander trailed behind, duffel bag and map in hand.

"Trying to hide from us, niblett?" Spike asked with a grin that didn't reach his tired eyes.

Dawn shook her head, pushing off the wall. "Just getting some air. I'm not so big on flying." She reached over and took a bag from Spike.

"So what kinda car didya get for us Harris? Somethin' fast?" Faith asked.

Xander answered in a subdued voice. "I… don't remember. Faith. Something, big, like an SUV I think."

"Hey man, are you doing okay?" Faith asked him quietly.

Xander looked at her, his face full of hostility. "Don't act like you care Faith; we all know you don't." He spat at her.

Stunned, she stood there as he walked across the street towards the rental place. Spike hesitated in following.

"It's not you, luv. He can't handle this. You're just the most painful reminder of what's missin' is all. Nothing y'can help."

"How the hell do I remind him of her?" she asked angrily.

Spike looked at her, his face empty of everything but pain. "You're The Slayer now, the only one. He can never forgive you for that, for not bein' her." He turned and strode away, muttering to himself. "And neither can I."

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Luke paced the diner, waiting for her to arrive. He didn't understand this nervousness; why was this so different than Jess? Because she was a girl? Because he had never met her? He didn't know.

He stopped pacing as headlights flooded the diner. A car pulled up and he took a deep breath; they were here.

Luke opened the door and stepped outside. The first thing he saw was a young burly guy get out of the driver's seat. He turned to the passenger side as a woman dressed in leather pants and a very low-cut red tank top step out. A feeling of dread washed over him. '_oh, god,' _He thought_. 'is that her?' _The feeling left as a much younger, less skanky girl got out of the back, along with a blond guy in even _more _leather. He knew the minute he saw her that she was Dawn; she looked like Joyce.

"Excuse me, are you Luke?" the young guy in front asked him.

Luke looked away from Dawn. "Uh yeah, that's me. You're Dawn's friends?"

The guy nodded. "I'm Xander, this is Faith, Spike, and of course, Dawn."

"Yeah, I could tell; she looks like her mom. Um, why don't you guys come in? I've got questions, I'm sure you guys have questions, so we might as well, get comfortable."

Dawn was the first to follow him in. "So, you run a diner?" she asked.

"Yup, the only decent one in town. You're free to work here, if you need money. Your cousin did when he was here. You don't have to or anything, but the pays good and I'm a decent boss on my good days." He told her.

She gave him a small smile before confusion hit her. "Wait; I have a cousin?"

Luke raised his eyebrows. "We've got a lot to get through, I guess."

Luke went behind the counter and started a fresh batch of coffee.

"You guys hungry? I can get ya whatever you want." Spike's face lit up at that until Faith elbowed him in the stomach.

"What? Was just gonna see if they've got flowered onions here."

Luke turned towards him, a coffee filter in hand. "Flowered onions? I have no idea what that is."

"Oh, it's beautiful, mate. See, first y'take an onion and ya-"

"You got burgers? Well all take burgers." Faith interrupted him.

Dawn shook her head. "No thanks, not hungry."

"I don't care if you're hungry or not, you're gonna eat something, got it? You haven't eaten since lunch yesterday." Faith ordered.

Dawn rolled her eyes, but said nothing. Luke took the opportunity to go cook while they settled at a table.

Xander looked around the diner, impressed. "Man, if you have to live somewhere besides with us, this is definitely the place. What's cooler that living above a diner? Really, think of the handiness of this- when you don't wanna cook and are craving fried food, you just have to go down the stairs! I should open a diner. 'Xan's'. it sounds nice, doesn't it? Anya would make a great waitress and I could be the cook in the back, yelling 'order up' when food was ready and stuff."

They all looked at him. Spike didn't even try to hide his smirk. "You're forgetting somethin', Harris. A cook has t'be able to do more than go across the street and order; he has to _make food_; a skill you're seriously lacking."

Xander opened his mouth to say something, but at that moment, the diner's door opened. A tall, skinny man came over to them, frowning. "You're at my table."

"The place is empty, buddy; you can have any table here."

"Yes, but I eat at this table almost every day; we have history. My butt is imprinted on that chair; it's like those touch-memory beds they have on TV. It's molded perfectly."

Dawn stood up and quickly got a new chair. At that moment, Luke came out with their food. Pleased was not what he felt when he saw Kirk.

"Out Kirk,"

"But the lights are on. There's people here."

"The sign says we're closed, so out."

"But you're serving food. My table's occupied. Are you discriminating against me? Is that is, Luke? If I'm not part of your posse, I can't eat here?"

"Yeah, that it. We weren't in the same clubs in high school, so now you can't eat here. Just _get out_ Kirk." He told him, pushing him out the door. Kirk turned and stopped.

"Luke there's something I have to tell you that will maybe change your mind."

Luke sighed. "What?"

"I love you. Not like I love Lulu of course, because she's a woman and I like to have sex with her, but I love you. If I were gay or female, I would be in love with you, but I'm not, so I just love you. You're my best friend, Luke."

Luke just stood there, staring.

"Kirk," he said quietly.

"Yes, Luke."

"Get. Out."

"Ok." He shrugged, heading out the door. Luke continued to stand there, rubbing his eyes.

"I should start out by saying that this is a very strange town; nothing but nut jobs and eccentrics live here. I'm pretty sure I'm insane, since I continue to live here, and I apologize that you're stuck here for at least the next two years. If I could change that, I really would. I wouldn't wish this town on anyone." Luke apologized. He turned to see them all with amused looks on their faces.

"What?"

"We're from California, babe. It'll take a lot more than that to shock us." Faith answered.

Luke's face scrunched.

"Did you just call him 'babe'?" Xander asked her.

She shrugged as she put her feet on the table. "What? He's hot; got the whole rugged manly-man thing goin' for him. And his ass looks good in those jeans."

Spike laughed as Dawn's face scrunched, much like her uncle's. "Ew! I might not know the guy a lot yet, but he's till my uncle. Please try not to gross me out so much, okay?"

"Whatever Dawnie. A little uncle appreciation never killed anyone." Faith brushed aside.

Xander and Spike fell silent. Dawn stiffened, her face hardened. "Don't _ever _call me that." She told Faith through clenched teeth.

Faith suddenly remembered, and she looked stricken. "God, I'm sorry kid. I forgot."

"Don't." Dawn turned to her uncle. "We've got a lot of stuff to talk about and not much time. We should probably get started."

Luke nodded, and pulled up a chair. He looked at Dawn right then, and all he could see was Joyce. He suddenly realized why he had been so much more afraid of taking her in than he had been with Jess; Jess had been a pain, had learned not to trust at a young age, had hated him. Dawn though, Dawn looked like Joyce, and Luke didn't think he could handle seeing the same angry looks on her face that he had on Jess'. He couldn't bear to see his sister look at him with hate. He looked in Dawn's eyes, the fear stabbing him, and hoped that he wouldn't have to.


	3. Suffer Well

**DISCLAIMER: It belongs to Joss and the CW**.

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After hours of talking, Luke led the group to the Inn. Dawn was going to stay there with the others for the night since they were leaving the next day.

Luke sighed wearily as he sat down on his couch. She was a sweet kid; there was something about her though, when you looked at her, you knew that she had seen more in the life than anyone should ever have to. Luke wasn't sure if he wanted to know what had placed that look there.

He took out the picture of Joyce, Liz and him that was taken when they were kids. He couldn't help but smile; Dawn looked so much like Joyce as a kid.

She wouldn't talk about her mom though. Luke had tried asking questions, but she dodged them all. Xander and Spike had answered most of them. He could tell that her death had hurt them almost as bad as it had hurt Dawn. From what they said and the looks on their faces when talking about her, Joyce had been a mom to them all.

When Luke had asked about his other niece, Buffy, they all sat silent. Finally, Spike spoke up, answering a few of his questions before having to stop. Luke saw a look in the other man's face that he knew well; Spike had loved her. None of them could talk about her death, other than to say that she fell. When he looked at the group, all trying to keep themselves together, even Faith, who had seemed standoffish about the whole thing, he knew better than to push.

Luke snapped back to the present as the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey hon, did they get there all right?" Lorelei's voice came through.

"Yeah. I just dropped them off at the Inn actually. I had to threaten Michel to make sure he wouldn't give them any crap, but they should be okay till tomorrow." Luke could hear her rustling around in the background, probably trying to find where she hid her latest stash of junk food.

"Good," She replied. "I'll stick him on dust duty if he does. So is she there?"

"Dawn? No, I had her stay with her friends for the night. I figured that she would rather be with them for one last night than here." He told her, leaning back on the couch.

"Poor kid. I can't imagine going through all of this at her age. How's she doing? What's she like?"

"You can tell that she's hurting, but she's trying to hide it as much as she can. She's a good kid; she's a lot like Joyce. Some of the stuff she does… it's Joyce." Luke's voice cracked slightly.

The rustling stilled. " Oh Luke, I'm so sorry! I've been busy about helping you get ready for Dawn to come and worried about how she'd be and I never even thought to ask you how you were. How are you? Do you want me to come over?" Lorelei apologized rapidly.

"No, no I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"You don't have to be fine; she was your big sister. You don't have to act like everything's alright."

"I'm not, I'm really fine. Listen, I'm gonna go to bed. Why don't you stop by tomorrow and I'll introduce you, okay? Don't worry about me."

"Okay, but you call me if you need anything, alright? I love you."

"Yeah, I will. Love you too. Night."

"Night."

Luke hung up the phone and looked at the picture once again. Joyce smiled back at him, her arm around Liz's shoulder. She wasn't just a mom to those kids, she had been a mom for him too.

Setting the picture down, Luke cried. He let the tears and the unbearable feeing in his chest do their worst until finally sleep consumed him.

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Dawn sat in the lobby of the Inn. Everyone was asleep, and she was enjoying the peace. She didn't sleep much these days, nightmares kept her from getting more than a few hours at a time. She looked up as she heard someone coming down the stairs, her fingers wrapped around the knife that she now carried with her at all times. She relaxed as she saw it was just Xander.

"Hey." She whispered.

"Hey yourself. Couldn't sleep?" Xander asked, creeping over to her. She shook her head. "Yeah, I don't get much sleep myself these days. All the thoughts running around my head just don't wanna quiet down at night." They were still a minute, neither speaking.

"That's not true. I don't sleep much because every time I close my eyes, I see them. Not just Buffy and your mom, but _all_ of them. Jessie, Miss Calendar, Kendra, all the things that we've killed over the years. I don't think I've had a decent night's sleep since I met your sister" He said, chuckled nervously.

Dawn nodded, understanding. "I know what you mean. After mom found out that Buffy was the Slayer, she would sit up almost all night and wait for her to get home, just to know that she was safe. And Buffy…Buffy never slept, I don't think. With everything we've all seen, I'm surprised that we're not all in straightjackets and on a pharmacy of drugs. I guess a little sleep loss isn't that bad in comparison." Dawn replied.

Xander sat on the ground next to her chair and leaned his head back. "So what do you think about Luke? He seems like a decent guy."

"Yeah, he does. I was looking at his menu at the diner, and he's got some of the same stuff mom used to make on there. It makes sense; I guess it could be nice to taste something that she used to make again. Buffy tried, but she couldn't cook. She could order a mean pizza though. And microwave a Doublemeat burger. I wonder if they have those here. I-it might be nice…." She trailed off. Xander reached for her hand, and felt something wet hit it. He looked up and saw that she was crying.

" Why'd she do that?" She asked, unable to hold the question in any more. "It was supposed to be me. She was _never_ supposed to jump. She was supposed to stay here, and save everybody. I was going to jump, and she was going to stay here, and for once let me be the one to fix things; to know that she was okay. Instead, _she_ jumped, and she left me here alone. They all left me. Why can't anyone _stay_?" she wept, pulling away from Xander.

Xander turned, gazing at her intensely. "Hey, I'm never gonna leave you Dawn. I'm gonna be there for you as long as you need me."

Her head whipped up. "You're leaving _tomorrow_! Don't tell me that you'll be there, because tomorrow you'll get on the plane, fly back to Sunnydale, and be with Anya. You'll all leave me here and go on with your lives, and I won't be part of them! And she _knew_ that that would happen, she knew when she jumped that I'd be left alone, and she did it anyway. If she had let me jump, I would at least be with mom, but now _she_ is, and I'm left here with an uncle I had never even heard about. As usual, Buffy thought about _everything_ but me. If she had cared at all, she would have let me die." Dawn burst. Standing, she ran up the stairs to her room, leaving a stricken Xander kneeling by the chair she had vacated.

Xander stayed there in a shocked silence until a voice spoke.

"She won't be alone, y'know." Spike spoke up from the dining room.

Xander looked up as he came and sat down. "You eavesdrop on everyone's conversations, no-bite?" he jibed wearily.

Spike ignored the taunt, and continued. "I'm not leavin' her. The Watcher and I found a place for me here b'fore we even flew out. I'll be here as long as she needs me."

"What? You don't have any reason to stay, Spike. Why would you stick around now that Buffy's not around to see you playing nice? I don't get why you flew out in the first place, and I don't get why Giles would want you here and not tell us."

Spike raised his eyebrows and reached for his flask. "Ol' Rupert doesn't tell you everything. He wants me here to look out for her, and I'm staying because I made Buffy a promise. I didn't hold to it that night on the tower, and now I'm doin' my best to make it up. I can't ever bring her back, but I can keep the one person she loved most on the world safe. I'm staying for Dawn; without Buffy or Joyce or her, I've got nothing to go back to Sunnydale for. And even though they never loved me, I loved all of them like they were my own family. I can't let anything more happen to 'er; if someone wants to hurt her, they're gonna have to send my limbs to opposite corners of the earth, douse me in holy water, set me on fire and scatter me on consecrated ground to do it. I don't think reducin' me to ash would even stop me from protectin' that chit, I'd find some way t'come back if she called for me."

Xander just nodded his head. "She's gonna need you. Maybe not to protect her, but at least to remind her of home. She's gonna be all alone in this town, in more ways than one. When all of them are running around, oblivious to everything but their own problems, she's gonna be wondering what might jump out of the next alley. None of them can understand that, so it could be good to have you here, I guess. To keep her from going crazy."

Both the men stood up, ready to go their own ways.

"Have a safe flight, Harris. I probably won't see you lot before y'go." Spike said as a good-bye.

"…Thanks. Take care of her Spike. And yourself." Xander replied.

He headed upstairs to bed and Spike walked outside to explore the town. If there was a single vamp in this town he was gonna find them before they found his Dawnie.

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Faith woke up with a start. Someone was in her room. She reached under her pillow and slowly drew out the knife she kept there. The person was creeping up to her bed. Faith reached out and landed on a handful of hair. Pulling the person back against her, she held the knife at their throat. The intruder let out a very familiar sounding screech and Faith immediately lowered her knife and turned on a light.

"Holy shit, Dawn! What are you doin', I coulda killed you!" Faith scolded the frightened girl who held a hand to her throat.

"Sorry, I-I just wanted to see if I could sleep with you tonight."

"What? Why?" Faith asked, not used to this.

Dawn looked at the ground. "When I didn't want to sleep by myself, I used to sleep with my mom or Buffy. You're the only girl here, and I guess…" Dawn fiddled with her bracelet, embarrassed.

Faith brushed her hair out of her face, surprised. "Uh, yeah, sure. Hop on in kid; promise I won't try to kill you or anything."

Dawn gave her a small smile, climbing in on the other side. "Thanks."

They both lay there a moment. Dawn wiggled around, getting comfortable.

"So what'd you think about the place? You think you can stand it here?" Faith asked her.

"I think I'll be okay. Luke seems nice, and nobody's tried to kill me yet besides you."

Faith hesitated a moment before speaking. "…I would stay, ya know. If I could, but-"

"You're the Slayer now. You have to be at the Hellmouth, I know." Dawn interrupted quietly.

"Yeah."

"I'll be okay, I promise. Maybe I can come visit in the summer or something."

"Yeah, definitely. You can come patrol with me. It'll be wicked, you an' me out there, kicking ass. Or maybe there'll be something evil here that needs killing and we'll have to come take care of it." Faith spoke with false brightness.

"Maybe. Spike says that he hasn't even sensed another vamp here yet, though. He wanted to go patrolling tonight, see how evil this place is before you all leave."

"Good. It might be fun hittin' a cemetery or two with him when we get back. He seems decent, for a vamp."

Dawn smiled. "He is. I was always trying to tell Buffy that, but she wouldn't listen. She didn't have a problem with Angel, but even without a soul, Spike's twice as cool as he was."

Faith turned towards Dawn. This was news to her. "Wait, he liked _Buffy_?"

"He's in love with Buffy." Dawn corrected. "She was such a bitch to him though, I don't get why he kept on trying. Sometimes I think that the only person who misses her and my mom as much as I do is him. He used to some and hang out with mom and they'd have hot chocolate or tea and talk about books and art and plays. He really knows a lot about that kinda stuff. Mom used to like spending time with him. They were gonna go see some Shakespeare play together, but she died before they got to. And Buffy…he really loved her, I think. He was gonna kill Drusilla for her. He wouldn't have done that for anything but love." Dawn looked over at Faith. "I know you hated Buffy, and I don't think you liked my mom either, but thanks for coming, you didn't have to."

Faith turned to see Dawn "Hey, I _never_ hated Buffy or your mom. I loved Buffy; she was like my little sister. I just got so tired of being the bad one, I guess. I hated that she had Angel and friends and people who actually cared about her. I wanted that. I never had it, and I wanted it so bad that I was willing to do anything." Faith tilted her head, considering. "And of course, I went a bit crazy; that didn't help much. But I never hated her. And your mom was the first adult who actually cared about me. She treated me like I was part of the family; I miss your mom." She leaned up on one elbow, feeling a sudden need for Dawn to understand. "I'm here because if Buffy was like my little sister that means you are too.

I had a shitty family and could care less about what happened to them, but with you, I'm gonna do better. I wish I coulda started a long time ago- I could've if I hadn't screwed up so bad, but I can't change that, so I'm starting now. You're family, Dawn. I can't keep you or stay with you, but I'm always gonna be there if you need me."

Dawn smiled in the dark. Who knew Faith had a heart? "You're a lot different than you used to be."

"Yeah well, prison'll do that to a girl. Go to sleep." Faith told her, turning to her side. Dawn pulled up the blankets, and soon both of them were asleep.

Tomorrow Xander and Faith would head back to Sunnydale while Dawn and Spike stayed in Stars Hollow. Tomorrow, all of them started the rest of their lives.


	4. Never learn to cry

**DISCLAIMER…ugh, just read the last billion disclaimers, k? It's not mine.**

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The next evening, the group drove to the airport, Luke following. The ride was somber, none of them knowing what to say. Xander spent most of the trip blinking back tears; he loved Dawn, she wasn't just Buffy's sister to him, she was _his_ sister. Throughout the night, he thought about what it would be like if he just didn't go back. If he flew Anya out here and the two of them started their lives over, with Dawn. He could be happy, he realized; Construction workers were needed everywhere, why not Connecticut? He knew that they could be a family; Anya would make a great mom.

But at the same time he thought that, another voice in his head whispered about the Hellmouth. He couldn't leave it, as much as he wanted to. The part of him that could've led a happy, normal life had died when he staked his best friend, and realized that the God he had once believed in just didn't care.

He looked over at Dawn sitting beside him, silent. She was the kind of kid who should be happy and here, he knew, she actually had a chance. She could go on, go to college, get married, start a family of her own. She didn't have to live in the dark, spending her time in cemeteries and worrying about if she was going to die this day. Sunnydale wasn't the kind of life she should have, and he was selfish for wanting to keep her there. He reached over and took her hand.

" I love you, ya know." He told her, his voice wavering.

Dawn gave him a watery smile, nodding. "I know; I love you too."

"You're coming out in the summer, right?"

she nodded "I'm gonna try to. I want to."

"Until then, stay on top of your schoolwork. Don't want you grounded or something. It looks like a decent place, just a guess, but I'd say that it's no eviler than most schools. Definitely not Sunnyd evil." He told her.

"I'll do good, promise. Honor roll and everything." She reassured him, squeezing his hand.

"Good. And if you need us, you've got your computer. Maybe you can get a web cam soon, so we can see you. No using it for anything else though; I don't wanna see you on '_Barely legal teens 10'_ or anything, got it?"

Dawn laughed as she whipped her eyes. "Promise. If you stay off those sites, you won't see-" she cut off as they pulled up. Panic shot through her brain. There wasn't time to say everything; she would never have enough time. Changing directions, Dawn rushed to the one request she had been saving.

"Xander," she spoke hurriedly, "take care of Buffy. S-she always liked flowers. Can you leave some for her, for me? I don't want it to look like nobody cares. She needs flowers, okay?" She pleaded.

Xander wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close. "I'll take care of it. Fresh flowers twice a week, okay? No one will ever be able to say that we didn't care." His voice broke, tears threatening to fall.

"I hate to leave her alone."

"You're not, Dawn. She'll always be with you. You've got her blood- for as long as your alive, she'll be with you." He told her, wishing it was so.

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They pulled up to the main doors, and Luke let them out. He figured they would prefer to say their good-byes alone, away from him. He waved to them all and circled the parking lot, waiting for Dawn.

Inside, Faith turned to Dawn. "Well kid, I guess this is it."

Dawn sniffed. "Yeah, I guess." To Faith's surprise, Dawn threw herself into her arms. "I'll be out this summer, k?"

"Course you will. We'll tear up the Bronze, and have guys begging for our numbers. Just stay safe till then, got it?"

"You too."

Faith shrugged nonchalantly. "Don't worry about me; I know how to take care of myself. You just remember to eat on the occasion, alright? Stay in school, don't hang out with the bad kids, avoid dark alleys, all that crap. You'll be good." Faith turned and headed to the metal detectors, not able to take it any longer.

Dawn turned to Spike. "Spike…"

"Hey, no teary good-byes for me, ducks. I'm not goin' anywhere."

Dawn stood there, stunned_. "What_?"

Spike just smiled at her. "My Niblett needs me; there's no where else I need to be."

"But- the Hellmouth…"

"They've got a dammed good Slayer, the Witch is getting' stronger by the second, Whelp can even hold his own on occasion. They don't need me." He told her.

Dawn hugged him tightly, burying her head in his chest. "Thank you." She whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

"Shh, don't thank me pet; I made a promise, I did. Now, go say your good-byes to the boy wonder over there and lets get you home."

Pulling away, she turned to Xander. He shook his head. "I can't say good-bye, I'll just end up crying like a baby. Besides, it's not like I'll never see you again, you'll be back in no time. And knowing us, I'll be talking with you and the computer in a couple hours anyways. So, I'll see just be seeing ya Dawn." He told her, the tears finally giving way and streaming down his face.

Dawn wiped her eyes. "I'll see you, Xander. Talk to you tonight, okay?"

He nodded, turning to Spike.

"Spike."

"Harris." The two men stared at each other, knowing what the other would say. They both nodded.

"See y'in the summer, Whelp."

"Later, Fangless." Xander turned and left, leaving Spike and Dawn.

"Let's go find that uncle of yours, bit."

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Luke was more than a little surprised when Dawn came back out to the car with Spike in tow.

"Uh, are you staying?" he asked.

"Yup, my niblett needs me, so I'm not goin' anywhere." Spike informed him.

Luke raised his eyebrows. "So, you're staying with us?"

"Don't worry, mate; found myself a place. I'll be outta your hair-except for the part where you'll see me every day."

Luke just nodded, resigned to the fact that Stars Hollow had just made it's weirdness quota for the year. What's one more in a town full of nut- jobs? "Well, hop on in; we should probably get back and get Dawn settled in."

Spike shook his head. "Uh, I've got m'bike waitin' for me here, so I'll just see ya tomorrow, alright? Give you two a chance to adjust, yeah?"

"Bike?" Asked Luke, hoping he heard wrong.

"Motorcycle. Decided that the Desoto probably wouldn't survive the trip, so I bought m'self a new bike. She's gorgeous too."

"Motorcycle? Dawn isn't riding a motorcycle, those things are death on wheels." Luke told him. Spike just smirked.

"We'll see, Duke."

"Did you just call me _Duke?" _Luke was liking him less and less every minute

"Did some snoopin' yesterday. Cute pictures, by the way." Spike was with a grin, turning away.

Luke didn't even know what to say. Watching him walk away, he spoke to Dawn. "I don't like that guy."

Dawn just grinned. "Nobody likes him at first. He just takes some getting used to. Spike likes to make you think he's all tough and stuff, and he is; but underneath it all, he's a poet."

Luke raised a brow. "A _poet_? Riiight."

Dawn smiled. "I did some snooping of my own."

Luke looked at her, then started laughing. "Yeah, you're related to me. Listen, I've got my fiancée coming over tonight to meet you, that all right?"

Dawn was surprised. She didn't know there _was_ a fiancée "Yeah, sure, is she nice?"

Luke grimaced. "She's insane. I've never met a woman crazier than Lorelai. Really, you should hear her go on about some completely mundane something or other; she can go for hours- she _has _gone for hours. Completely crazy."

Dawn smiled softly, reading Luke like a book. "Yeah, you love her. Only someone completely whipped can talk like that and have that goofy grin on the whole time. She sounds nice. I'm from a large group of babblers, so I understand how easy it is to just go on and on."

"Great, more of you."

She shrugged. "It's a thing."

The ride back to Stars Hollow was quiet, but not uncomfortably so. By the time they

reached home, Luke realized; this…_thing_- him and Dawn- it was going to take some work, lots of it; but in the end, they were going to be okay.


	5. Mad World

**DISCLAIMER: See the other chapters.**

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Lorelai took a breath, then pushed 'call'. After an excruciating three rings, it picked up.

"Mom?" Rory's voice came through.

Lorelai hesitated. "Hi."

"…Why are you calling me?" Rory asked.

_Not _what Lorelai wanted to hear. "I just…there's been a lot of stuff happening here, important stuff; and I don't know, it's just made me realize how _stupid _we are."

"What?"

Lorelai sighed, exasperated. "Well, really; we're not talking because you want to take a year off. What's _wrong_ with us? You let some jerk make you question how insanely talented you are, and I freak out because your not following our _college plan_? Since when do we _plan _things?" She ranted.

Rory sat silently on the other end, waiting for her to finish. "Do you mean you want to stop fighting?"

"Of _course_ I want to stop fighting! There had been so much going on here, and every time something new pops up, I just want to call and tell you about it, and I'm tired of not getting to. I don't _want _you to live with my parents; I want you to come home! I want you to be able to be a total slacker here instead of waking up at seven in the morning like I know you're having to do there. I need you here, kid; lets face it, we're hopeless apart. The only people who understand our wonderful specialness are us, and I look stupid if I dress up on Crazy Hat Day by myself. I miss you!" She exclaimed, practically throwing herself off the couch where she had been sitting.

"Mom, I miss you too! Can I please come home? I haven't slept past eight in two months, and Grandma keeps tabs on everything I do, and the maid took my cloths, and _I want my mommy_!" Rory wailed.

By now, Lorelai was crying.through "Okay hon, I'll come get you stuff. Man, I have to warn you though, when I say it's been crazy here, I really really mean it; there's been some major changes."

"Like what?" Rory asked.

Lorelai settled back onto the couch. She started off with the older news first.. "Well, you know that Dave came back from college, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, Zach broke up with Lane and quit the band when he found the two of them doing a 'welcome back' make-out thing in her room."

Rory gasped. "Oh no! Lane? God, she's groupie and drummer. Poor Zach!"

"I know! And Luke's sister Joyce died and made him guardian of his niece."

Rory sat on her bed, the phone pressed to her ear. "Really? How's that? I didn't know Luke had another sister."

Lorelai nodded even though Rory couldn't see her. "Me neither. Dawn's a sweet kid though. I net her yesterday. I can't believe the stuff that she's been through though. See, Luke wasn't first in line to get her, her sister was."

"Who's her sister?"

"Her name's Buffy."

"_Buffy_?" Rory laughed.

"Yeah, we'll get back to the weirdness of that in a sec. Anyways, Buffy died a few months after her mom did, so Dawn had to leave California and come live here with Luke."

"Oh, my god!"

Again, Lorelai nodded. "I know! It almost makes my problems with Miss Congeniality 2 seem petty and stupid. "

"Almost. How's Luke handling this?"

"Well, he's coping. He agrees that the plot was working, but the writing just fell on its face."

Rory rolled her eyes. "About his niece and sister."

"Right. He's taking it surprisingly well. He's holding it together for Dawn. Oh! And it gets better."

"Well, it can't get more depressing."

"True. Well, there's this guy Spike, who's Dawn's unofficial bodyguard or something. He was like, her sister's boyfriend and when Dawn came here, he got an apartment in town and now follows her everywhere. Taylor had him arrested once already for stalking, but Dawn made Luke get him out." Lorelai told her, the happy little gossipmonger

Rory grimaced. "That's creepy!"

"It's actually kinda sweet if you've talked to him. He promised Buffy that he would never let anything happen to Dawn, and he's taking it pretty seriously."

"Like 'the Professional' seriously?"

"Oh, he makes the Professional look like a bum."

"Wow." Rory sat up a little straighter, remembering something. "Hey, speaking of creepy bums, I got some news too."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Um, you remember Tristian from Chilton?"

"The one who made your life hell?"

"The same. Anyways, he and Logan went to military school together, and he's back in town."

Lorelai scrunched up her face. "What? That's just weird."

"What's weirder is that he's actually really nice. Seriously, he doesn't call me Mary, and he's quiet, and he's got rally short hair, and he's a photographer. He's nothing like he as in school, now he's actually cool to hang out with." Rory told her.

"Honey, once you start having sleepovers with boys, you move on to being a whole different kind of Mary; the kind your mommy used to be called."

"Huh. You know, I actually never understood why the Puffs were called Marys too, but now that makes sense."

"I'm such a terrible mother; my daughter didn't know the name of the most famous hooker in the Bible. I should have taken you to church on Easter or something, sometimes there's pot lucks."

"I like free food." Rory offered.

"And we eat our weight in it every day. So back to Tristian, that's just strange; I guess Army school did the boy good."

"It did. Actually, he's doing a collection of photos of small town right now for some magazine, and I told him to check out Stars Hollow. And now that I'm coming back home, maybe I'll have him drop in this weekend."

"Yeah, cause Logan will love having his girlfriend bring a man home with her for the weekend." Jibed Lorelai.

"Hey, quiet you. He'll be fine with it."

"Whatever. Hey, I'm leaving right now to come get you. Get ready."

"Okay, I'll go pack my stuff. I can't wait to see you!" Rory exclaimed, a smile on her face.

"Me too. Be there in thirty."

Half and hour later, Emily opened the door to a smiling Lorelai, only to be moved out of the way by Rory, who went flying into her mom's waiting arms.

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Dawn felt like she was in an alternate dimension. At school, everyone had been friendly, trying to make her feel welcome, and the worst thing that happened was being behind in a few subjects. No monsters. No evil invisible people. No demon possessions. Even the cheerleaders had been nice.

The only thing in this whole town that kept her from thinking she was in a really crappy hell dimension was Spike. Having him here helped remind her that this town wasn't all she had left.

Instead of going to Luke's, she headed towards Spike's. Opening the door with her key, she entered the darkened apartment and went into the bedroom.

Spike was asleep, thankfully wearing sweats this time. Dawn crawled onto the other side of the bed and lay down.

"What'cha doing here, pet?" he mumbled, still half-asleep.

Dawn stared at the ceiling. "I'm going crazy here."

"mm. How was school?"

"I'm behind in English and math. Everything else is good. Nobody died today."

"Weird."

"I know. At lunch, all the girls were whining about how scary Saw II was." She told him, rolling her eyes.

"What'cha do?"

"I started laughing. They think I'm a freak, which I am. Most of the guys think I'm cool though. I think they were impressed that I collect knives and don't freak out at scary movies."

Spike's eyes opened and he lifted his head, his hair up everywhere. "No boys. You don't want t'kill every boy in this town cause they look at you, got it? That'll land me in a nice sunny cell. And Saw II was ridicules; the whole thing was like a page outta Angelus' diary. If you're gonna torture somebody, y'got to get your hands dirty, not wait for them t'do it themselves. Takes the joy outta it, it does." He looked at Dawn quizzically as she just smiled at him, bemused. "What?"

"We're strange people, you know that? I mean, most people would tell a sixteen year old girl that movies like that are too violent for them; with us though, you're more worried about making sure I know how to torture right, and I watch those kind of movies and spend most of the time wondering how the make-up team did such a good job. We are seriously disturbed." She sighed, rolling onto her back.

"We're not disturbed, pet. We've just seen too much…done too much to function like everyone else. We've seen to much bad to be disgusted by the talkies." He spoke quietly, gazing at some far away place.

Dawn faced him and raised her eyebrows. "Careful Spike, you're starting to sound all soul-having or something."

"What? No, I'm evil through and through, platelet. If it wasn't for this bloody chip, I'd take a bite outta you right now." he scoffed.

Dawn just laughed at his overused denial. "I know Spike; you're the big Bad, wouldn't hesitated a second before ripping me open and bathing in my blood." She muttered, closing her eyes.

"You'd better believe it." Spike turned to his side, and within moments, they had both drifted off to sleep.

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Dawn woke slowly, and then scrambled out of bed with a gasp as she realized were she was.

"Oh shit!" she exclaimed, waking Spike. He jerked up, ready for action only to

see Dawn grabbing her bag.

'What's wrong?"

It's almost seven! Luke's gonna freak out that I'm not back. Oh _shit, shit, shit_!"

Spike grabbed some clothes and ran into the bathroom, changing quickly.

"Come on, pet." He called for her, grabbing his coat. "We'll take the bike an' be there in no time."

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When they got to the diner, there was a crowd of people inside, all talking. Furiously. Walking in, they caught snippets of the conversations.

"I bet that bleached- haired, _motorcycle _boy kidnapped her-"

'She probably ran away. Those Califo-"

"-maybe it's drugs. If you get in with the wrong crowd-"

"She's probably at a friend's house, forgot to tell-"

"Luke!" Dawn cried over the din.

Luke looked up, relief, quickly followed by anger crossing his face. "Were the hell have you been? I called the school, checked the book store, at Miss Patty's, at Lorelai's, I checked everywhere!"

"I-I went to see Spike! Then I fell asleep and just woke up, I'm sorry!" she apologized.

" I knew that ruffian was trouble!" Called out Taylor. "Always following her around, and dressing like one of those 'gothic' kids; he's probably on drugs!"

Spike just smirked. "Sorry mate, just a bottle of Jack to put me t'sleep at night."

Taylor's eyes widened at that. "Swell, he's an alcoholic!"

"Okay, everybody out! Thanks for your help, now leave, people! Let's go!" Luke announced, herding the townspeople out the door. Soon only Luke, Dawn, Spike, Lorelai, and a young brunette woman were left.

Luke turned to Spike. "Look, I don't know how it worked in California, but here, if she's not coming straight her from school, she calls, got it?"

"I was _asleep_, y'ponce! How was I to know if she had bloody called or not! And even it I was awake, I wouldn't have woken her to ask! That was th'first time she's slept even a few hours through in weeks. There's no way in hell I'd wake her from that." Was Spike's angry reply.

Luke stood silent, arms crossed. "Lorelai? Why don'tcha take Rory and Dawn upstairs and get 'em introduced?"

"What? Oh, you want us to clear out; got'cha." She stood and led the girls up.

Spike stood, hands on his hips facing Luke.

"Dawn is under my care her Spike, and if you can't follow the rules I have, then you need to leave town." Luke told him quietly.

"Bloody hell; I don't get your problem. Th'only time I'm not ten paces behind her is when she's here or at school. She can't get hurt!" Spike argued.

"You being behind her all the time _is_ what I'm worried about."

Spike just stared at him. "Well, like it or not Grizzly Adams, she needs me. I'm th'closest thing to home she's got."

"_This_ is her home." Luke pointed out.

"No, this is where she lives. Her home is with me and Buffy and her mum, and the Whelp and Anya, and Red and Glenda. We are her home." Spike sighed. "Sit down mate; there's some stuff y'need to understand if you're gonna take care of her."

"I've raised a kid before." Luke told him.

"Not like Dawn. Sit." Spike said. Luke sat, and the two men faced off at a table.

Spike took out his flask and began to explain. "Sunnydale was hell. There wasn't a single night that someone wasn't raped or murdered or just disappeared or a gang would come tearin' through town, bent on causin' damage. Bad things love that town, an' the few good folks who're left and don't just ignore it all, fight to protect it."

"Vigilantes?" Luke asked.

Spike shrugged. "Close enough. Anyways, Buffy an'them were fighters, vigilantes like you say. Every night, they'd go out and hunt down evil, doin' what they could to protect the innocents. Buffy…she was amazin'. I've never seen a person fight like her; it was a like a dance." He smiled slightly, lost in memories. "She could look as graceful as a ballerina doing 'Swan Lake'. _She was poetry._" Spike came back, the smile gone.

"Dawn learned to fight early on, and she learned no to trust anyone even earlier. In Sunnyhell, there were a few she knew to count on, and we all stayed together. We were like the Osbornes, Mansons, and the Addams family all in one, plus a big ol' weapons chest. A lot of th' time we hated each other, but we always trusted each other.

Dawn knows t'trust me." Spike told him, passing Luke the flask "She doesn't know to trust you, and she doesn't know to trust this town. The very idea of not havin' to worry about who might be hidin' around the next corner is enough to throw her. That's why she needs me. As long as I'm here, she knows she's okay. Th'chit still can't sleep through the night, but if she knows I'm there, at least she can walk down th'street without jumping at her own shadow."

Luke sat and absorbed it all. He looked up at Spike, only one question on his mind; "Did Joyce really die of an aneurysm?" He asked.

Pain filled Spike's face, only to be matched by Luke's own. "Yeah, mate; she did. Those Summers women, they're a tough lot. Joyce fought that bloody thing for months, and in the end the bastard only got her by sneakin' outta nowhere. Joyce was a strong lady; she'd clean us up when we were bloody and bruised, she'd have hot chocolate ready an' waiting when y'needed a good talk, she's stay up half th'night watching' for Buffy and still be up th'next morning, cheerful as ever an' cookin' breakfast" Spike took a big swig before continuing. "If it had been anything but an aneurysm, I coulda stopped it. If somebody was after her or somethin', I coulda stopped them. But I couldn't fight a tumor. I couldn't save 'er from herself. I couldn't save either of them from themselves." He whispered quietly.

Luke lifted his head. "You mean Buffy?"

Spike nodded. "Somethin' was after Dawn; someone who wanted to hurt her. Had her on this tower. We went after her, and I got up there. Th' guy who had Dawn got the best of me, and I couldn't get to her. Buffy finished fightin' the lady that was with him, and she got up the tower and ran off it, takin' the big bad with her. Killed herself to save her sister." Spike sniffed and looked sharply at Luke. "There's not a Summers woman I haven't' loved; I couldn't save th'other two, but it's gonna take a lot more than you kickin' me outta town to stop me from protectin' Dawn."

"Well then I guess I'd better let you do your job. And I better buy her a cell phone or something, to make sure she can call me." Luke told him. They two men looked at each other, an understanding passing between them.

They sat quietly, passing the flask back and forth, trying to drown their pain. They remembered who they had lost; the other's suffering a comfort. The two found a

moment's peace before life kicked back in, and they masked their sorrow and carried on.


End file.
